Scars
by vballmania23
Summary: Abandoned. "Want to know how I got these scars? My father was a drinker, and a fiend..." The story of how the Joker got his scars. Crossover Batman/Law and Order CI. Warning - very dark!
1. My Father Was A Fiend

A/N: Warning - VERY DARK! Seriously, watch out. This is definitely my darkest piece, but it seemed to fit so perfectly. Basically, a story on how the Joker got his scars, and a crossover with Law and Order. I know that the Joker's name is supposed to be Jack, but I'm using artistic liscence here...

* * *

Bobby shudders as he hears the door crash open. His dad has been out drinking again. The heavy footsteps echo through the small apartment, each stomp sending a shiver of fear down his spine.

One can always tell what kind of mood Dad is in from the way he enters the house – the louder it was, the more violent he acted. From his place in the hallway closet, Bobby hears the smooth rasp of metal gliding against metal. His mom hears the thundering footsteps too, and knows what it means. She always takes the kitchen knife for protection, but every time she endures the insults and fists and puts it back unused.

Dad staggers down the hall and veers sideways, bumping against the wall. "Frances!" he bellows, slamming a fist into the wall. It goes through with a crunch sending plaster and dust spiraling through the air. Blood drips from his hand, and Dad roars, sending his foot flying for the kitchen door. It buckles under the kick, hinges breaking and crashing to the floor.

Safe in his hiding place, silent fearful tears stream down the nine-year-old's face. His father has never been _this_ violent before. There is a crash and a scream from the kitchen and Bobby covers his mouth with his hands. _Never scream!_ That's what his mother has always told him. Don't scream, stay hidden. Don't bring attention to yourself.

His father's voice seems like one long roar, and there is the meaty sound of flesh hitting flesh. Mom yells for help and Dad yells at her. Bobby can't stay still anymore. His mother, the only person who cares for him, is being attacked. He quietly opens the closet door and heads for the kitchen.

Mom is on the ground and Dad is facing her, back to the door. He has Mom's knife in one hand and the other one is wrapped around her neck. She's trying to get away, squirming and yelling and pleading but Dad just laughs in her face and tightens his grip.

Bobby heads for the row of knives and takes out the second-largest one. He creeps up behind his father and raises the knife. by sheer luck or some drunken instinct, Dad turns around in time to throw up a hand in the knife's downward path. The knife pierces one side of the palm and goes through the other side. Bobby presses down until the hilt meets his father's hand. He doesn't think of what he's doing, just what needs to be done. He needs to hurt this bastard as much as possible, protect himself and his mother from him.

His father is roaring in pain and brings his other hand up. He backhands Bobby across the face, sending him sliding across the kitchen floor and crashing into the cabinets headfirst.

The adults are yelling again, but their words are indecipherable. Bobby's head is swimming and a sharp throbbing resounds throughout his body. His vision is swimming, and Bobby can just make out his father throwing his head back in laughter. The only thing that pierces the fog of his senses is maniacal laughter as his father takes the knife and plunges it into his mother again and again.

Bobby cries out, tears falling down his face. He tries to get up but something is wrong and he can't balance. Dad turns to him, blood dripping down his shirt. "Wh- -o -ious?"

Dad is stalking closer, flipping the blade over and over as he approaches. Bobby tries to scramble away but he still can't seem to coordinate his limbs and simply bumps into the cabinet again. His father speaks again, and this time Bobby watches the smirking lips mouthing the words.

_Why so serious?_

Dad looms over Bobby and takes his chin in an iron grip, ignoring the pitiful attempts at escape. He takes the blade and forces it between Bobby's clenched teeth. The knife presses against Bobby's cheek, drawing blood. "Let's put a smile on that face!" Dad is grinning and the smell of alcohol floods the air. He applies only a small amount of pressure, but the knife slices through Bobby's cheek like it was butter. Bobby gives a soundless cry as blood gushes into his mouth, but his dad just laughs. He flips the knife and holds it against the other cheek, slicing through it just as easily as the other one.

Both cheeks are a bloody mess, and blood flows everywhere. Police are banging on the door yelling something, but all Bobby is aware of is his father's face swimming in and out of focus, grinning crazily and covered with blood. He tries to form words but it hurts too much, and his mouth won't cooperate. All that comes out are soft sobs of pain.

The police finally break down the door and Dad lunges out of Bobby's field of vision. It's getting darker, the moments of clarity coming less and less. He can see a face hovering over him wearing a police hat, but the details are blurry. His eyes roll back and the last thing Bobby Goren hears is his father's insane laughter as the grim policemen hurry him away.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, see what I said about it being dark? The idea for this came when I was watching Law and Order. Bobby's always been great at reading people and figuring out their methods. My interpretation of the Joker is he likes using people's instincts and base reactions against them. In order to do that, he has to know how they would react.

Then I got to thinking about how Bobby's father had been so terrible and a drunk, and the Joker's voice popped into my head. Then I began thinking, what if Bobby's father had attacked him like the Joker's? Tada, plot bunny on steriods. And now you know my entire thought process. Anways, review, flame, whatever. I don't have a beta, so if you see anything wrong please please please tell me. Anything is appreciated!


	2. Hospitals and Asylums and Jokers, Oh My!

The first thing Bobby notices is a steady beeping in the background. He floats in and out of consciousness but the beeping is always there. It is a constant, a steadying force against the events that have ripped his life to shreds. Just like his face.

When he looks back, the first moment he can remember he is alone. The lights are harsh and bright and it smells like antiseptic. Two lines of fire trace their way across his cheeks, and he moans in pain. Unconsciousness is beckoning to him and he gratefully accepts, hiding from the pain and confusion for at least a little longer.

The next time he can remember waking up, there are nurses and a doctor and police officers surrounding him. They are all talking to each other, but the beeping is in the background, reassuring in the low hum of voices. When they notice he's awake, they quiet down. The doctor stands next to his bed with a diagnostic chart and tells Bobby what happened. He uses technical terms and words that Bobby wouldn't have understood even if he wasn't high on the pain medication they're pumping through his veins. The doctor rambles on until he looks down at Bobby and shakes his head. "I'm sorry" he says, but Bobby even though he can finally understand _what _the doctor is saying, he can't figure out _why_.

He tries to frown, but the movement causes the strings of fire on his cheeks to burst into life again. He puts his mouth in a straight line and the fire dies some but doesn't completely go away. He curves his lips up, and it soothes the inferno. He smiles as broadly as he can, willing the pain to go away. The doctor and the nurses and the policemen are staring at him, but Bobby ignores them. _They_ can't keep the pain away, so he will just have to do it himself.

It's hard to hold the giant smile, and the pain is sneaking back. He needs something to keep the smile on, to make it grow. He has to be _happier. _Tentatively, he tries a giggle. It helps, so he lets out a full-blown laugh. The adults are still staring at him like he's _crazy_. That thought makes his smile shrink, and his cheeks twinge. He forces a laugh, and it goes away. The laughter echoes through the silent room long after the nurses add a sedative to his IV.

* * *

The next time Bobby wakes up, he's strapped to the bed. He's so sleepy, and can barely keep his eyes open. There are people bustling around him, but he can't be moved to care. He just watches with a lazy apathy. His cheeks still burn even through the haze on his emotions, so he forces his lips into a smile.

A man is sitting next to his bed. He is wearing glasses with thin golden frames, and his hair is peppered with grey. A pencil and a pad of paper are balanced on his lap, and he peers over at Bobby. He asks Bobby questions – so many _questions! _What is his name? What is his favorite color? Does he have any pets? How did his parents treat him? Why is he smiling?

The medicine is wearing off and all he wants to do is yell and scream, but then he would frown and he can't do that because it hurts too much. So he smiles through it all and giggles when he should be angry and laughs until he's choking for air when he should cry.

The doctor just peers at him with that part-sympathetic part-pitying part-disgusted gaze and asks another question. Bobby rattles his restraints and tries to get out but they've locked him in so all he can do is listen to the questions. They rattle around his skull and get his thoughts all jumbled until it is his father questioning him while his mother just smiles in the background. The doctor leers over him and says words Bobby can't hear. He tries to listen but his father is drowning them out and the man just laughs and shoves a pencil into Bobby's forehead. He thrashes and tries to get away but he's being weighed down and all he can do is laugh because frowning still hurts.

When the psychiatrist leaves, the nurses come in and sedate the patient, shuddering at the crazed wheezing laughter. He thrashes and giggles and chuckles and yells things to people who aren't there, and the doctor sighs again and the psychiatrist writes down the name of an asylum on a piece of paper and leaves it with the nurse at the desk.

_You're crazy._ They don't tell him that, but they convey it in the looks they give when they think his attention's elsewhere and the way they walk on eggshells around him. He can tell because they strap his arms down and give him medicine that he doesn't need.

_I'm not!_ He tells them that he's not crazy, because his father was crazy and he's _not_ like his father. He refuses to be something his father was, but they keep on insisting he is. He denies it and they just smile and tiptoe away.

He overhears the doctor and a nurse whisper about moving him, and they mention an _asylum_. But that is where they stick people who are crazy, and Bobby knows that he isn't. His efforts to escape double, but nothing works. He's strapped to the bed and helpless and too soon they are moving him to an asylum.

* * *

The walls are white and the tiles are white and the orderlies are dressed in white and the patients' (prisoners') uniforms are white and everything is blinding in the fluorescent lights. The asylum is orderly and everything happens on a never-ending schedule. Every day is the same and the monotony is almost as painful as his new scars.

He longs for color, for something different to happen. He doesn't want to stay here with the too-white color scheme and routines. He doesn't want to shuffle through life in slippers that don't fit right eating food that doesn't taste good.

His escape is spontaneous, a decision made in a split-second. He's been left unattended and the only thing that separates him from freedom is a reinforced door. It doesn't have a handle on his side, but there is a deck of cards on the table. He grabs one and slips it between the door and the wall to push down on the latch. It slides out of place and clicks free, and to Bobby that sound is the most melodious one in the world. He wedges his fingers in and pries the door open, and now he can find an exit and finally be free.

The corridors are long and twisting, but Bobby keeps walking forward. He sneaks through the identical hallways on bare feet, because his slippers were too noisy. The card is unconsciously clutched in one hand, and the other is balled into a fist. Nobody will stop him. Nobody.

An orderly is pacing down the hall, and when he sees Bobby his eyes widen in shock. He holds out a hand and tries to appease Bobby, and he plays along. He walks towards the orderly like a good little sheep, putting his fears to rest. When he's in striking distance, Bobby leaps forward. He shoves a corner of the card into one of the man's eyes, and brings his other hand in a crushing punch. It is fuelled by desperation and anger that has been building since before his father attacked him. He only needs to strike once.

The orderly is left where he collapses, but Bobby reaches down and plucks his card out from the man's eye. He takes a moment to examine it. He hadn't noticed it before, but the card was a joker. It's dressed in a frilly purple and green jester's outfit, with and bells and a strange hat. Its hair is green and it has an unnaturally large smile.

It somehow reminds Bobby of himself, and before he knows it he's almost falling down from laughter. He slides the card into a pocket and starts running down the hall again, but the laughter won't stop. It's bubbling underneath his skin and it just feels so good to let go. He's happier than he's been for a long time. The laughter keeps his scars from aching, he's escaping from the asylum, and everything just seems to be going well for Bobby. He spots a glowing red exit sign and nearly dances with joy. Yes, everything is going _very_ well.

* * *

**A/N: **So that was the second chapter of Scars. I'd like to thank megalolz and falcon-rider for reviewing the first chapter. I've completely changed the writing style of this, to kinda show how the Joker's been changed. And just to clear it up, he does have a psycotic episode. Hence the pencils through the brain (tribute to the Dark Knight, awesome movie that it is) and seeing his parents. None of that really happened. Anyways, please review, flame, criticize, whatever. I'm review greedy :)


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